A Noble Bet in Early Care and Education Lessons from One Community's Experience

by Gill, Brian P.; Dembosky, Jacob W.; Caulkins, Jonathan P.

• ISBN13: 9780833031624
• ISBN10: 0833031627
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-06-19
• Publisher: RAND Corporation

Summary

Lessons learned from Pittsburgh's bold but troubled Early Childhood Initiative

Table of Contents

Preface	iii
Figures	ix
Tables	xi
Summary	xiii
Acknowledgments	xxxiii
Glossary	xxxv
Introduction	1	(18)
The Goals of the Early Childhood Initiative	1	(3)
The Aims and Methods of This Study	4	(3)
The Importance of Quality in Early Care and Education	7	(4)
The ``Noble Bet''	11	(2)
The Bottom Line	13	(6)
Quality	13	(1)
Scale	13	(2)
Community	15	(1)
Sustainability	15	(1)
Positive Aspects of ECI's Legacy	16	(3)
A Brief History of the Early Childhood Initiative	19	(30)
Genesis	19	(4)
The Planning Period	23	(2)
The ECI Business Plan	25	(4)
Launch	29	(1)
Planning in the Neighborhoods	30	(3)
Quality Assurance	33	(1)
Transitions in ECI Management	34	(1)
Early Problems	35	(5)
Physical Infrastructure Challenges	35	(1)
Expansion of the Committee Oversight Structure	36	(1)
Neighborhood Planning and Approval Delays	37	(3)
Head Start Initiatives	40	(1)
The Revised (1998) Business Plan	40	(1)
Further Reassessment and Revision	41	(4)
ECI's Status After Two Years	41	(1)
The Third Business Plan	42	(3)
Scale-Down	45	(1)
Conclusion	46	(3)
ECI's Theory of Action	49	(16)
The Administrative Burden	52	(2)
The Time Needed for Community-Based Process	54	(3)
Community Control vs. Quality Control	57	(2)
The Administrative Structure	59	(5)
Absence of a Board	60	(1)
Confused Authority Lines and Proliferating Committees	60	(2)
Consequences of Administrative Complexity	62	(2)
Conclusion	64	(1)
ECI Services: Demand, Supply, and Incentives	65	(16)
Who Would ECI Serve?	67	(1)
What Services Would Be Requested by Parents and Lead Agencies?	68	(5)
Service Mix and Costs	68	(2)
The Demand for Full-Day Care	70	(1)
Incentives to Neighborhood Agencies	71	(2)
Who Would Provide ECI Services?	73	(7)
New Providers and Capital Costs	75	(1)
New Providers, Line Item Funding, and Fixed Operating Costs	75	(2)
ECI and Family Child-Care Providers	77	(2)
The Supply of Qualified Labor	79	(1)
Conclusion	80	(1)
Explaining Eci's Costs	81	(10)
Expected and Actual Costs by Component	81	(1)
Cost per Child-Hour	82	(1)
Adjusting for Service Mix	83	(1)
Adjusting for Fixed Costs	84	(2)
Summary of Cost Factors	86	(3)
Conclusion	89	(2)
Sustainability and the Strategy to Secure State Funding	91	(14)
Challenges for the State Strategy	92	(3)
Diffuse Benefits and Concentrated Costs	92	(1)
Short Time Horizons	93	(1)
Regional Politics in Pennsylvania	93	(1)
Doubtful Public Commitment to ECE	94	(1)
Problems with ECI's State Strategy	95	(5)
Inadequate Engagement of State Officials and Policymakers	96	(1)
``Education'' Became ``Care''	97	(1)
ECI and the State Subsidy System	98	(2)
Sustainability in the Absence of a Direct State Commitment	100	(2)
Conclusion	102	(3)
Lessons for the Future, Alternative Models, and Public-Policy Implications	105	(22)
Lessons for Future Large-Scale Private-Public Initiatives	105	(7)
Focus on Clear Goals and Well-Defined Services	105	(1)
Establish an Independent Board and a Clear Administrative Structure	106	(1)
Adopt a Clean, Direct Theory of Action That Promotes Intended Goals	107	(1)
Consider Demand, Supply, and Responses to Incentives	107	(1)
Include All Stakeholders	108	(1)
Start with an Independent Review	109	(1)
Make a Substantial Investment in Planning and Management	110	(1)
Make Sure Bold Visions Are Backed Up by Hardheaded Plans That Acknowledge Political and Policy Realities	111	(1)
Alternative Models for the Design of ECE Initiatives	112	(9)
The Chicago Child-Parent Center Program	113	(2)
Child Care Matters in Southeastern Pennsylvania	115	(2)
Focus on Our Future in York County, Pennsylvania	117	(1)
Focus on Quality in Chicago	118	(2)
Concluding Thoughts on Alternative Models	120	(1)
Implications for Public Policy	121	(6)
Promoting the Demand for Quality	121	(1)
Quality Supplements	122	(2)
Professional Development for Providers	124	(1)
Education, Care, and Work Incentives	124	(3)
Appendix: ECI Cost Models	127	(14)
References	141